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Egg and Watercress Sandwiches

This sandwich is hands-down one of my most favorite sandwiches. During our time in England I used to pop into Tesco’s and pick up one of these ready-made sandwiches along with a packet of crisps before I headed to work. Tesco’s is a grocery store chain in Britain and crisps is Brit-speak for potato chips. Watercress is not an herb that has gained huge popularity here in the States but it is quite popular in England. You can find it here, but you really have to look for it. If you live in a particularly rural area in the U.S., it may be very hard to find and it’s not one you can easily grow at home yourself. Watercress is not a strongly flavored herb. It has a slight peppery taste but it has a smooth butteriness to it as well. It doesn’t overshadow the food it is being mixed in with, but it adds a hint of flavor that makes all the difference.

It is so easy to put together and what I love about this sandwich is the egg flavor really holds up. I love eggs and I love egg salad. Here in the States, we typically combine the eggs with mayo, mustard and sweet pickle relish. With this egg salad, the egg really is the star of the show and just a bit of mayo, salt & pepper will do the trick perfectly.

Ingredients: 4 hard boiled eggs (peeled and chopped)

2 tbsp. mayonnaise

salt and pepper

handful of watercress (rinsed and stems cut off)

4 slices sandwich bread

Directions:

Combined chopped egg, mayonnaise and salt and pepper (to taste) in a small bowl. Mix thoroughly and taste for seasoning. Wash watercress and remove the stems (those are the yucky parts). I usually just pluck the leaves off and don’t even bother with chopping it up.

Slather the egg salad on the bread and top with watercress leaves. If you want to get fancy, then you can certainly remove the crusts and cut into triangles but I usually just prefer it as it is, sliced down the middle. I put my egg salad on pretty thick. This recipe may make 3 sandwiches if you layer it more thinly.

Cook’s Note: If you can’t find watercress, flat leaf Italian parsley makes a nice substitute. To make the perfect hard boiled eggs, just put eggs in a pot and cover with cool water. Put on the stove over high heat. As soon as it comes to a roiling boil, remove pot from heat and put a lid on it. Set your timer for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes rinse the eggs under cool water for a few minutes, then peel. No more green-tinged eggs!

Enjoy!

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Egg and Watercress Sandwiches

Prep Time30minutes

Cook Time10minutes

Total Time40minutes

Servings2

AuthorThe Country Cook

Ingredients

4hard boiled eggspeeled and chopped

2tbsp. of mayonnaise

salt and pepperto taste

handful of watercressrinsed and stems cut off

4slicessandwich bread

Instructions

Combined chopped egg, mayonnaise and salt and pepper (to taste) in a small bowl.

Mix thoroughly and taste for seasoning.

Wash watercress and remove the stems (those are the yucky parts).

I usually just pluck the leaves off and don’t even bother with chopping it up.

Slather the egg salad on the bread and top with watercress leaves.

If you want to get fancy, then you can certainly remove the crusts and cut into triangles but I usually just prefer it as it is, sliced down the middle.

Recipe Notes

If you can’t find watercress, flat leaf Italian parsley makes a nice substitute. To make the perfect hard boiled eggs, just put eggs in a pot and cover with cool water. Put on the stove over high heat. As soon as it comes to a roiling boil, remove pot from heat and put a lid on it. Set your timer for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes rinse the eggs under cool water for a few minutes then peel. No more green-tinged eggs!

Reader Interactions

Comments

I had difficulty finding watercress at our local grocery stores in the past. I'm not one to hunt down an ingredient unless I absolutely have to have it. I love egg salad and these sandwiches sound perfect for the occasion. Yummy!

I'm the same way – definitely won't go hunting all over town looking for one special ingredient. I'm really fortunate that my local Kroger carries it all the time and I was surprised to find out that it is grown here locally too :o)

I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am for this wedding! I know, its pathetic. I'm constantly watching documentries, and shows about how Kate and William met, the wedding planning process, etc etc.. My husband says Im obsessed! And he's right!! lol

That is a great recipe Bran!! I believe we actually grow a small crop of watercress each year, but I'd have to ask my hubby. My reason for stating this is if I'm right then the reason it might be hard to find is that it's out season for it. See? I know a little about farming! haha!

I really enjoyed your post! I used to also buy Egg and Watercres sandwhiches from Tesco when I was studying in England! And just in time for the Royal Wedding! I can't find watercress here in Mexico so I will have to make do with cucmber sandwhiches instead 🙂

Brandie,I haven't had egg and cress sandwiches in YEARS. We always got them on special occasion picnics in Scotland and ended up eating them in the car with stewed tea in flask and rain pelting on the bonnet! You've made me all nostalgic. I just LOVE your fancy English tea set! Now that is definitely pretty fitting for Friday 😉

What a great use for all the leftover Easter eggs…my hubby would love this one 🙂 My girlfriend is having a Royal Wedding party…thank goodness it starts at 6 AM vs. 4 AM. I wish I owned a big hat, but I do have a tiara…how do you think it will look with my pjs????

I love egg salad so much! In fact, I'm having some for breakfast right now on toast. I've never eaten watercress before but I'm going to change that. It looks great on your sandwich. Have a wonderful weekend!

What a wonderful post. I have not yet been fortunate enough to travel to England (I'm a New England gal) BUT I just planted watercress last year and am waiting to enjoy the fruits of my labor. My grandmother always used to serve Watercress and Cucumber sandwiches to her once a week Bridge Club and I use to offer to serve them up so I could sneak a sandwich or two on the sly! It is also great in salads. Thanks for the wonderful post.!